Secure storage units such as safes, gun cabinets or comparable security cabinets are often used to store valuables such as cash, jewels, important documents and firearms. The safes preferably help protect the contents from theft, fire or unauthorized access, often in residential or business settings. A typical unit includes a body or cabinet assembly defining a storage compartment with an opening selectively covered by a hinged door. As will be understood, the cabinet assembly and door are frequently made of high strength and durable materials.
In certain variations storage units such as floor safes or stand-alone safes may be portable or semi-portable, meaning that they are not permanently built into the infrastructure of a building and potentially can be moved with sufficient effort. In other arrangements, the safes are mounted to the structure as fixtures or installed or built-in to substantially permanent aspects of the building, such wall-safes or safes embedded in built-in cabinet units. Typically the safe door has a lock or locking mechanism which can be locked or unlocked using an access mechanism to allow authorized individuals access to the interior of the safe. Example access mechanisms may require keys, entry of a manual combination, entry of an electronic combination, biometrics such as fingerprint scans, use of a magnetic strip, dual authentication protocols or similar access controls. Operation of the lock via the access mechanism may include a relatively simple rotating hook and post arrangement or more complex arrangements. For example, the safe may incorporate slidable retaining rods which extend to interlock the door to the cabinet when engaged.
Preventing tampering and unauthorized access is an important goal for making such safes secure. To assist that goal, the hinge arrangement for the door preferably is tamper-resistant. One approach to enhance the security of the hinge is to make the hinge pivot mechanism such as the pivot pins inaccessible from the exterior of the safe. However, when an interior pivot pin arrangement is used, it can be difficult to manufacture and assemble and it may limit the extent to which the door can be opened during authorized access. Many arrangements limit rotation of the door to ninety degrees or less. Further, in many arrangements the safe door is biased to a closed position, which can be unwieldy and awkward to hold open during use.
It is desirable to provide a secure storage unit hinge arrangement which maximizes security while also promoting ease of use.